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Don't ask me to be an idiot

Tag Archives: Separation of Church and State

Time for another Quote of the Month. I swear since I started doing this, it seems like time flies by, or I am getting old, or something. I had to check my archives to see if I had posted one this month… Lets go with James Madison this time. One of the main men who put pen to our constitution. I have got to see if I can find a way to put the posts in this series in a file somehwere. Anyway, here is James Madison speaking of the “truths” of religion.

“What influence, in fact, have ecclesiastical establishments had on society? In some instances they have been seen to erect a spiritual tyranny on the ruins of the civil authority; on many instances they have been seen upholding the thrones of political tyranny; in no instance have they been the guardians of the liberties of the people. Rulers who wish to subvert the public liberty may have found an established clergy convenient auxiliaries. A just government, instituted to secure and perpetuate it, needs them not.” – “A Memorial and Remonstrance”, 1785

If Madison were alive today I suspect our professional creationists would refer to him as: Strident! Militant! I’d say he hit the peg squarely with the hammer. The one thing that stands the test of time, is the is the intent of religion to subvert human liberties in favor of wealth and power.